Description of the situation
21 January 1997
Disease Outbreak Reported
As at 20 January 1997, a total of 60 cases of Ebola haemorrhagic fever with 45 deaths had been reported in the outbreak which started at the end of July 1997. The last death was a 17-month-old child who was a member of the family known to have been contacts of a previous case in Booué area. The child developed fever on 15 January and died on 18 January. His grandmother who was caring for him has been hospitalised in Libreville for close monitoring but remains asymptomatic. As of this date, 15 cases had recovered from illness. Forty-seven contacts were still being followed up in Libreville while all contacts in Booué had been removed from surveillance.